


Panic With A Side Of Tomatoes

by april_zephyr (April_Zephyr)



Series: Panic With A Side Of Tomatoes [2]
Category: Naruto
Genre: Alive Uchiha Family, Anxiety Disorder, Boys Kissing, Confusion, F/M, Itachi gives good advice, M/M, Miscommunication, Naruto has issues, Panic Attacks, Sasuke's an ass in the beginning, Surprise Kissing, The Uchiha's Love Naruto, Weight Issues, anaemia
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-12-31
Updated: 2014-12-31
Packaged: 2018-03-04 12:06:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,693
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3067211
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/April_Zephyr/pseuds/april_zephyr
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It had approximately been seven years since Naruto had last seen Sasuke. It wasn’t an intentional thing, he just wasn’t entirely sure how to face the male.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Panic With A Side Of Tomatoes

**Chapter One**

It had approximately been seven years since Naruto had last seen Sasuke. It wasn’t an intentional thing, he just wasn’t entirely sure how to face the male. The dark haired male had decided to start a new life in another country and Naruto was the type of guy that thought that no place was better than home so he didn’t go with him. When Sasuke had suddenly come back from the other country, he had come back with a girl. This surprised Naruto, he always assumed that Sasuke was asexual. The man didn’t show clear indications that he was sexually attracted to any sex, he was the complete opposite of Naruto. Naruto wasn’t one to care about gender, if he found someone attractive, he would approach them. But that wasn’t the problem. As soon as he had seen the other male, a look of clear distaste was very noticeable on his face when he had caught sight of the blond. Sasuke clearly hated him and he had no idea where he went wrong. Until he figured out what he did, he wasn’t going to bother his childhood friend.  
“Naruto! It’s so nice of you to come over!” Mikoto squealed, pressing kisses all over his face. He absolutely loved Sasuke’s mother and even if he wasn’t on speaking terms with the other male, that did not mean that he was going to ignore the guy’s mother or family.

“Miko-chan! I just had to visit you.” Naruto grinned, as the shorter lady let him into her house. The house looked the same as it always did. Fugaku and the family did occasionally change the house decorations, but not to the point of being painstakingly obvious.

“Oh Naruto. I was beginning to think that you were avoiding us.” Mikoto smiled, “Fugaku was actually planning on dropping by your place to see if there was anything wrong.”

“You guys worry too much about me.” Naruto laughed, “My workload has increased significantly. I just love working with the kids, but sometimes it feels like there’s way too much to do.”

“You know that you can always call me or Itachi over to help you.” Mikoto suggested, “We absolutely love the children.”

“I know. But I’m going to have to say that I’m going to be sad to be leaving them.” Naruto frowned, “… I don’t hate my father for doing this, but I love those kids.”

“Don’t worry. I will take amazing care of them.” Mikoto reassured, “An you’ll still be able to see them whenever you want to.”

“It’s just not the same.” Naruto sighed, placing a bag on the kitchen table, “And I come bearing gifts.”

“What did you bring us this time.” Mikoto giggled, “Fugaku feels like we’re becoming indebted to you.”

“You’re family. I have to spoil you sometimes.” Naruto stated huskily, “I brought you tomatoes. You know that I hate tomatoes or anything remotely healthy. But it was pretty difficult to let these ones go. There’s this sweet little old next door to me that grows these amazing vegetables and her tomatoes are to die for.”

“That’s so sweet of you.” Mikoto said with graceful simplicity, “Will you stay for dinner? We really miss your company.”

“I wish I could.” Naruto moaned, “I miss you all too.”

“I insist that you stay.” Fugaku declared as he entered the room, “We’ll be eating soon. You know I wish my wife would let us boys take over the household duties occasionally.”

“That is never happening again.” Mikoto groaned, “I love you boys dearly, but you can’t cook.”

“That’s a lie. I can cook.” Itachi stated, pressing a kiss against his mother’s cheek.

“Yes. You can cook eggs.” Mikoto snorted, earning a laugh from Naruto.

“That was awfully not lady-like Miko-chan,” Naruto teased, “Fugaku. You should worry about me, I’m going to steal your wife away one of these days.”

“I’m sorry to inform you this, but my wife loves me more than you.” Fugaku grinned, “And a young man like you should look for someone your own age.”

“My idiot brother doesn’t know what he’s missing.” Itachi sighed, “You shouldn’t be waiting around for him.”

“What? I’m not waiting around for anyone.” Naruto stated in a serious tone, “As long as your brother is happy, good for him.”

“I don’t understand what happened between the two of you.” Fugaku sighed, taking a seat at the kitchen table.

“Once you figure it, please do tell me.” Naruto laughed, “Anyway, I don’t really think what we had counted as friendship. He just hated me a little less than he does now.”

“Have you met his girlfriend?” Itachi asked, indicating to Naruto that he should join them on the table.

“Haruno? I have seen her. She’s beautiful.” Naruto grinned, “But not as beautiful as you Mikoto.”

“Oh Naruto.” Mikoto giggled, “She is pretty. But I don’t think she’s right for Sasuke.”

“Mother’s intuition?” Naruto teased, “You’ll just have to wait and see how everything turns out.”

“Of course. Sasuke and Haruno have been invited for dinner.” Itachi laughed, earning an exaggerated gasp from Naruto.

“I can believe you guy’s would trick me like that.” Naruto joked, “But in all honesty, I don’t think this is a good idea. Sasuke hates me and I’m a womaniser, I could easily bewitch Haruno.”

“You keep talking, yet I see no actions.” Itachi grinned, he was always highly amused by Naruto’s antics.

“Damn it Itachi! You can make a bet like that.” Naruto groaned, “You know that I can’t refuse something like that.”

“Maybe it can be a test.” Itachi continued, “See if it’ll be easy to seduce Haruno away from Sasuke.”

“I can’t do that to your brother. I thought you knew me Itachi.” Naruto laughed, holding his hands up in surrender, “What are we eating tonight anyway?”

“Chicken Alfredo as a main dish and strawberry cheesecake as a dessert.” Mikoto answered proudly. The woman made amazing food and Naruto would actually pick her food over any awkward situation. He could deal with Sasuke for a good hour if he was being rewarded with Mikoto’s amazing food.

“That’s all you had to say. I’m staying.” Naruto laughed, hugging Mikoto, “Seriously Fugaku. I’m going to steal your wife.”

“Oh dear. You do know how to make me blush.” Mikoto giggled, slapping the young adult’s shoulder slightly.

“So Naruto. Are you still good at chess?” Fugaku asked, “We’ll have to play a game one day.”

“Of course.” Naruto grinned, “I think I should ask the question that everyone is curious about. Itachi. Are you in a relationship?”

“I am if you’re offering.” Itachi laughed, “I should have you know that no one wanted to know whether I am in a relationship or not.”

“We were actually going to ask you…” Mikoto smiled, “So is there anyone?”

“If Naruto’s offering, there will be.” Itachi snorted, folding his arms over his chest.

“Ask me again in a few days and I might agree.” Naruto responded, he didn’t necessarily have a problem with the idea of dating Itachi. The only problem was that he was going to be dating his ‘best’ friend’s brother. He didn’t think that Sasuke would be too happy with the idea of his brother getting on with his friend.

“Deal.” Itachi smirked, “I can handle a couple of days.”

“The doorbell’s ringing.” Mikoto stated, “Naruto will you be a dear and open it for me.”

“Anything for you Miko-chan.” Naruto answered, going towards the door. The young adult knew that Sasuke and his girlfriend were going to be on the other side of it, but he couldn’t care less.

“Hello. I don’t believe we were introduced properly last time.” The pink haired female smiled, giving the male a small wave. She was beautiful, if she wasn’t dating Sasuke, Naruto was sure he would have tried to whisk her away from her partner.

“Yes. I apologise for my rudeness.” Naruto apologised, “My name is Namikaze Naruto. It’s a pleasure to meet you.”

“I’m Haruno Sakura, it wasn’t necessarily rude since we had just seen each other in passing.” Sakura laughed, “So were you invited to the family dinner too?”

“Yeah, no matter how much they deny it. The Uchiha family loves my company.” Naruto answered, it was easy to talk to her. She didn’t seem to be rude, he was now curious as to why the other Uchiha’s weren’t as smitten with the female, “Oh I’m sorry, please make yourselves comfortable.”

The rest of the dinner appeared to go somewhat well, watching the interactions between the family was almost a revelation to Naruto. The Uchiha’s appeared to be indifferent to Sakura, every little joke or compliment she made appeared to be regarded only slightly. Naruto felt awkward, he had never seen the family treat anyone this way before and even he had to admit that it wasn’t entirely fair. They weren’t even giving her a chance.  
“Naruto. I’m going to be seeing you more often now that you’re going to be working under your father.” Fugaku smiled, “We should try to have lunch during work hours.”

“Geez. When you put it that way you make it sound like I’m going to be doing the dirty with my father.” Naruto laughed, “But it would be nice to have lunch with you.”

“Naru-kun. Are you dating anyone?” Mikoto asked, “I know a couple of ladies that would be happy to have you.”

“Miko-chan, we both know that I would be no good for those ladies.” Naruto sighed, “And I’m not really dating anyone right now, but I am in an intimate relationship.”

“How does that work?” Sakura asked curiously, peering at the blond male.

“He’s ditched the romance and is screwing someone.” Itachi answered, grinning at the blond.

“Don’t put it so crudely.” Naruto snorted, as he finished the pasta dish. Fugaku and Mikoto were so used to conversations turning suggestive that they didn’t even bat an eyelash whenever sex or anything of that sort was mentioned. Naruto on the other hand was glad that he was in the company of the three Uchiha’s because he was sure that if he didn’t have Fugaku, Mikoto, and Itachi, he would have surely combusted at the looks he was receiving from the young Uchiha.

“Did I say anything incorrectly?” Itachi continued, “I think it’s time you took relationships more seriously.”

“Tell me that in again in a couple of days.” Naruto grinned, hinting at the fact that Itachi had agreed to ask him out on a date after a few days. Naruto glanced at the other side of the table to just get a glance of Sasuke, he could feel the male’s eyes burn into him, but he wanted to see the infamous Uchiha glare by sight. When Naruto’s eyes finally caught Sasuke’s, he inhaled harshly. The blond had no idea what caused his friend to hate him so much. Naruto had to leave. Now.

“Of course.” Itachi smiled, “Are you ready for dessert?”

“Oh. I just realised that it’s getting late.” Naruto answered sheepishly, “I’m afraid that I have an appointment with a friend I won’t be able to stay for dessert.”

“Do you want to take a piece with you?” Mikoto asked, “Are you sure you can’t stay for a few minutes longer?”

“I really wish I could.” Naruto breathed, “I’ll visit you as soon as I can Miko-chan.”

“We’ll hold you to that Naruto.” Fugaku smiled, “We know where you live.”

“Thank you for this amazing meal.” Naruto laughed, “And it was nice to see you all again.”

“Do you want me to see you out?” Itachi questioned, he had the strangest feeling in the back of his mind that something was bothering the blond,

“No. You should all enjoy the rest of your meal. I’ll see myself out.” Naruto smiled, giving Itachi a side hug, Fugaku a firm handshake, Mikoto a kiss on the cheek, and Sakura a small wave. As soon as Naruto exited the establishment, his knees began to shake. It was strange to think that he was able to hold off his panic for this long. His friend hated him. The blond male slid down against a tree as he frustratedly dialled a number on his phone.  
“Yo Shika, can you pick me up?” He asked his friend as soon as he heard the call pick up.

“How troublesome. Where are you?” Shikamaru asked.

“Outside the Uchiha estate.” Naruto sighed, “I don’t know how long I’m going to hold it.”

“I’ll get there as soon as I can.” Was the last thing that Naruto heard before the line cut. And when he thought that he was getting better with the panic attacks, they always seemed to reappear and bite him on the ass. This wasn’t good, his face was beginning to heat up, his vision blurred, and breathing appeared to be pretty darn difficult. Naruto was going to pass out. He had no doubt about it. Tsunade was going to kill him.

“Naruto! Hold on we’ve almost got you.” Shikamaru yelled as he threw open the passenger seat to Kiba’s car.

“Shit, man. He’s passed out.” Kiba cursed, “Do you need some help putting him in the back?”

“I think I can manage.” Shikamaru snorted, as he manoeuvred the blond’s limp body to the vehicle.

“Is he alive?” Kiba asked, noticing that his friend looked awfully pale.

“He is alive, but I still think we should drop him off at Tsunade’s.” Shikamaru stated, checking the blond’s pulse, “I’m going to call Iruka and we’re going to drop by Naruto’s to see whether he’s eating enough. He doesn’t usually faint unless he’s not eating well or he’s suffering from slight anaemia from not eating.”

“Are you going to tell Minato and Kushina?” Kiba questioned, as he drove to Tsunade’s place.

“I’ll tell them as soon as I can, but we should get them to worry.” Shikamaru answered softly.

When the trio reached Tsunade’s house, the blonde woman’s house, she was already hysterical. She was very protective of Naruto and the fact that something like this had happened more frequent than usual frightened her greatly. The male wasn’t taking care of himself properly. When Naruto started to regain consciousness, he was waiting the inevitable blow from Tsunade, she was the sort of woman that incorporated tough love.  
“We're going to conduct some tests tomorrow.” Tsunade stated, folding her arms over her chest. The fact that she didn’t hit the male worried Naruto.

“Are you okay?” Naruto asked, sitting up. He regretted the motion as soon as he did it, the dizziness was overwhelming.

“Brat. You should be resting.” Tsunade scolded, “And I should be asking you that question.”

“I’ll tell you everything tomorrow.” Naruto smiled, “So when will I be released?”

“I may release you tomorrow.” Tsunade answered, “But you better not make me regret this Naruto. This is the fourth time you fainted within three weeks.”

“You won’t regret it.” Naruto promised, “I’m going to sleep now. We’ll talk tomorrow.”

“Okay.” Tsunade agreed, before turning to leave the room.

The Next Day

When Naruto woke up the next day there was this nagging feeling in the back of the mind that he had forgotten to do something. Shikamaru was sat on the chair next to Naruto’s bed, napping like usual. It had taken Naruto approximately a good thirty minutes to figure it out, he hadn’t called or text Itachi, he had always contacted the guy to pass on the message that he had gotten home safely. The whole Uchiha family were full of worriers, they may have mastered the indifferent facial expressions, but internally it was a completely different story.  
“Yo Shika. I need you to call Itachi for me.” Naruto smiled sheepishly, the hospital refused to let phones be used within the premises and Tsunade still hadn’t given Naruto the okay to leave his room.

“How troublesome.” Shikamaru sighed, “I don’t have his number.”

“Then use my phone.” Naruto grinned, “And can you tell him that I wasn’t able to contact him because my phone died, but I was able to get home safely.”

“I’m not going to lie for you Naruto.” Shikamaru frowned, “I’m going to tell Itachi what happened if he asks.”

“Are you trying to get me murdered?” Naruto moaned, “Tsunade’s already angry with me. You should add my parents to that list because they’re going to find out about it soon. If you tell Itachi, he’ll be angry and he’ll tell his parents and they’ll also be angry with me.”

“Maybe you should have thought about that before you neglected taking care of yourself.” Shikamaru scolded, “I went by your place with Iruka. You had no food in your fridge. No food in the entire house.”

“I was going to go shopping.” Naruto complained, “I got distracted by a sudden dinner invitation.”

“I’m going to call Itachi. You should expect him soon.” Shikamaru stated, leaving the room.

Half an hour later

“Take it all off.” Tsunade stated as she entered the room.

“What.” Naruto frowned, “Take what off?”

“Your clothes. I need to weigh you.” Tsunade hissed, pulling the male out of his bed.

“Fine. Okay.” Naruto groaned, shrugging off his shirt and pants. He never really had the chance to look at his body these days, he had been so busy that he just usually showered, threw on some clothes, and that was it. Looking at his body, he could tell he was pretty bad, he had a feeling Tsunade was going to murder him. When he stepped on the scale he winced slightly.

“You idiot. You’ve lost twenty lbs.” Tsunade cursed, “You were perfectly healthy. 145 lbs is not healthy for your height Naruto.”

“I’m sorry. I’ll be more careful.” Naruto winced, it was a lot worse than he was expecting. He had never been under 150 lbs, that probably meant that he had lost all his muscles.

“How many times have you been eating daily?” Tsunade started, her notepad was out and she spent the majority of the time jotting down notes on his previous weight, his current weight and his measurements.

“I can’t remember. I’ve been distracted.” Naruto answered sheepishly, he had been eating the occasional snack to get energy boosts.

“Naruto. I won’t discharge you unless you can promise me that you will eat at least three times a day. Healthy and balanced meals.” Tsunade groaned, she had the feeling that she was being too lenient on the young male.

“I promise.” Naruto stated in a serious tone, “I never break promises.”

“Okay.” Tsunade agreed, “Itachi, Sasuke. Stop hovering around and enter the room.”

“Sorry. We didn’t mean to intrude.” Itachi apologised, “So what’s wrong with Naruto?”

“The brat is suffering from a slight case of anaemia, anxiety disorder, and he has lost over 20 lbs in a month.” Tsunade answered, “The idiot has fainted four times within three weeks and I’m sure that there have been other times that he hasn’t bothered to mention.”

“Ouch, when you say it out loud it sounds a lot worse than it is.” Naruto hesitated, as he started putting his clothes back on. He really didn’t need anyone else knowing his health problems. The blond was starting to feel on edge, he already had enough people scolding him and he didn’t need Itachi to join in on the bandwagon. And the fact that this was all mentioned in front of Sasuke pissed him off, what right did the other male have to be told his weaknesses.

“Naruto you need to be careful.” Itachi frowned, “You’re going to be working longer hours.”

“I know.” Naruto groaned, “If we’re done here. I’d like to go home and relax.”

“You don’t know.” Sasuke hissed, “You wouldn’t be in this situation in the first place if you knew. This is the third time something like this has happened to you.”

“I’m not hearing this from you.” Naruto stated, “You have no right to talk to me like this. We haven’t talked in over seven years. You can’t jump in and out of my life whenever you feel like it.”

“Sasuke’s only worried about you.” Itachi started, “He has every right to worry about you. The two of you are childhood friends.”

“We were never friends Itachi.” Naruto frowned, it hurt to admit it, but it was true. He and Sasuke were not friends, they never were and they never would be. It really hurt like a bitch. The sad thing was that it had taken him almost two decades to figure it out.

“What are you talking about? You are friends.” Itachi continued, “The two of you are being idiots. You both need to be adults and discuss your problems.”

“He’s right. We’re not friends.” Sasuke agreed, “We were forced into each others lives by our nosey parents. Just because they’re friends, doesn’t mean that we are automatically friends.”

“I appreciate the fact that the two of you took time off your day to visit me, but I think it’s time the two of you left.” Naruto breathed, “Tsunade. I am forever indebted to you and I thank you for everything.”

“Naruto.” Tsunade sighed, “I expect to see you next week with an update.”

“Definitely. I’ll be back on Saturday.” Naruto smiled, “I’ll see myself off now.”

“Let me drop you home.” Itachi argued, taking the male by his elbow, “Sasuke. I’ll see you tomorrow at the presentation.”

“Yes.” Sasuke stated, as he walked with the other males to get to his own vehicle.

“Can you drop me off at my fathers? I need to discuss something with him.” Naruto asked, he knew he wasn’t getting out of having a ride with Itachi. Something had been bothering the blond for a while, he had lived in this village for all of his life, but it was starting to feel different. It didn’t feel like home anymore. He had travelled across the world, but he now thought it was time for him to settle in another village. A fresh start.

The ride to his father’s house was a long but silent trip. It wasn’t necessarily uncomfortable, but it was pretty strange for the blond to be quiet for a long period of time. Itachi would glance at the blond every so often just to make sure that he hadn’t fallen asleep.  
“Thank you for the ride.” Naruto smiled, “I’ll get my father to drop me back home.”

“Don’t be foolish. I’ll take you home after you talk to your father.” Itachi declared, putting the vehicle in park.

“Okay. I guess you should come with me inside.” Naruto decided, “I’m not sure how long this will take.”

“I can do that.” Itachi smiled, following the blond.

“Naruto!” Kushina gushed, smacking her son’s head as soon as she opened the door.

“Why the hell are you hitting me for?” Naruto hissed, rubbing his head.

“You visited Mikoto before you visited me, you ungrateful little brat.” Kushina frowned, “You don’t love your own mother.”

“Geez. You know I love you.” Naruto frowned, “You whacked me in front of Itachi.”

“Oh. I didn’t see you there Itachi.” Kushina laughed sheepishly, “Do come in.”

“Thank you Kushina.” Itachi grinned, “It has been a long time.”

“We have a lot to talk about.” Kushina smiled, dragging the Uchiha by his arm into the living room. Naruto on the other hand went directly to his father’s office. He knocked on the door firmly twice before entering the room.

“Naruto. Are you okay?” Minato asked, as he motioned for Naruto to join him on the sofa,

“I’m great. I wanted to talk to you about something.” Naruto smiled, his father was a lot calmer than his mother when it came to anything.

“Is this about the job?” Minato questioned, placing the book he was reading on the table.

“Kind of.” Naruto frowned, “I heard that you need to make an alliance with the company in Suna. I was hoping that you would send me there.”

“Are you sure you want to do this? You’ll be living in Suna for as long as it takes to build the alliance. That could take from many months to years.” Minato sighed, “This is a big obligation.”

“I know.” Naruto grinned, “I’m the best you’ve got. I mean you did teach me everything. Fugaku has also taught me a couple of secrets you don’t even know.”

“Fine.” Minato agreed, “But you’ll be the one to tell your mother.”

“Are you kidding? Do you want me dead?” Naruto groaned, “She’s going to overreact.”

“Your mother always overreacts.” Minato laughed, “You’re her only son.”

“Who overreacts?” Kushina screamed, slamming the door to the office open. Naruto and Minato’s eyes widened considerably when they noticed the very notable wooden spoon in her hand. Someone was going to get beaten up.

“I think you should tell your mother the news.” Minato stated, trying to divert the attention away from himself. Naruto’s mouth gaped as he looked between his mother and father. This ultimately lead to the decision that his father was evil, he was willing to put his own safety before his son. At least Itachi was behind his mother, that meant that there was a possibility that he wouldn’t be hurt as bad.

“Guess who’s going to Suna.” Naruto laughed nervously, rubbing the back of his head.

“What.” Kushina frowned, her current anger receding as she looked between her husband and son.

“Naruto’s going to Suna to handle the company alliance.” Minato added, watching his wife’s expression appear slightly dejected worried him.

“My baby’s moving away from me?” Kushina asked, her lips quivering slightly.

“I’ll be back mum. I promise.” Naruto frowned, getting off the sofa to comfort his mother.

“I can watch over him.” Itachi offered, “I usually go to Suna every few months to see how our company over there is doing.”

“You better be careful.” Kushina yelled, hugging her son tightly.

“He’s not leaving yet. We’ll have two weeks with him.” Minato assured her, “Naruto needs this.”

“Okay. I want you to call me whenever you can.” Kushina frowned, kissing her son’s cheek.

“I do all the time.” Naruto laughed, “I really have to go now. Itachi promised to take me out to dinner.”

“Those Uchiha’s. They keep stealing my son away from me.” Kushina snorted, glaring at Itachi. It wasn’t a serious glare, but Itachi could help but wince slightly at the look. The woman used to babysit all the time when he was a child and he had to admit that he was more terrified of her than his own parents. He felt incredibly sorry for Naruto.

“Well, what can I say. Everyone loves me.” Naruto grinned mischievously, “I’ll visit you next week.”

“You better.” Kushina sighed, giving her son one last hug before releasing him.

“Bye!” Naruto laughed as he and Itachi exited the house. When the duo entered the car he knew that Itachi was going to ask him a handful of questions.

“I wasn’t aware of the fact that you were planning on moving away.” Itachi started, “This isn’t related to Sasuke, right?”

“Not everything is about him.” Naruto grumbled, “I haven’t been doing so well here. I think I need a break from this area for a while.”

“Are you sure that you’re going to be okay over there?” Itachi asked, “You do know that you’re still going to have to talk to talk to Sasuke before you leave.”

“I’m definitely going to be okay. I have a friend from university living there. His family is nice and they all seem to like me.” Naruto smiled, “I know I’m going to have to talk to him. I’m just dreading it. I have no idea what I’m going to say.”

“I don’t know how to help, considering the fact that the two of you decided that you were never friends to begin with.” Itachi sighed, he wasn’t entirely sure what was going on between the two men. The only thing he didn’t doubt was that there was either some sort of conflict or miscommunication and the two of them would have to fix that for themselves.

“I don’t think that I would have ever expected the infamous Itachi to not know how to advise someone.” Naruto snorted, “I just think we should define whatever is between us. If we’re not friends, we should decide on whether we want to be acquaintances, friends, or ignore each other for good.”

“You always thought the two of you were friends, right?” Itachi questioned, the way the blond treated his brother was similar to what one would treat their friends.

“Yeah. But that was a long time ago.” Naruto groaned, “Do you know how much it sucks when you find out that you’ve been involved in a one sided friendship for most of your life? Well it sucks.”

“Let me take you out to dinner.” Itachi smiled, “It’ll clear your mind a bit.”

“Did you seriously think that I was just using that as an excuse to leave? Of course you’re buying me dinner.” Naruto laughed, “I have to start eating properly soon. But I was thinking I should eat what I want tonight.”

“Ramen?” Itachi asked curiously as he shifted the car to drive. The drive to Ichiraku’s was filled with chatter and jokes. It appeared that the blond had cheered up considerably. Naruto was smiling more and it was pretty obvious that the young adult had lifted a weight off his shoulders.

When they reached Ichiraku’s, Naruto greeted the owner and his daughter with a friendliness that one would use to close friends and family. They spent most of the night talking, eating, and drinking sake. Itachi found it strange that the blond wasn’t eating as much as he usually did, he only ate one bowl of ramen and only had a couple of glasses of sake. Looking around the establishment, Itachi noticed a very familiar looking pink haired female. Sakura Haruno was in the same place, but without Sasuke. When she noticed the duo, she waved and approached them.  
“Hey Naruto, can I talk to you?” Sakura asked curiously, looking between the two males.

“I’ll wait for you in the car.” Itachi sighed, it was clear that the blond was going to take Sakura on her offer, because even if Naruto wasn’t considered to be Sasuke’s friend, he still cared about him considerably.

“Okay. It’ll only take a few minutes.” Naruto smiled, leading Sakura outside. The young woman appeared to be blushing, Naruto wasn’t sure if it was due to the cold or her drinking alcohol. The pink haired woman seemed to be having an internal battle as her eyebrows would twitch or her face would slightly scrunch up. Sakura smiled before she manoeuvred onto her tiptoes and placed a kiss against Naruto’s lips. The blond was in complete shock, it took a minute for him to understand what was happening. He put his hands on her shoulders and gently pushed her back onto her feet.

“Naru-“ Sakura started before getting cut off completely by the blond male.

“Look, I know that you’re drunk.” Naruto stated, “That’s all you have to say to Sasuke.”

“Liste-“ Sakura continued trying to get her point across, but the male just wasn’t allowing her to finish her statements.

“Sakura. You’re a pretty girl, but I am not that kind of guy.” Naruto groaned, “Do you need me to take you home?”

“No. I came here with my friends.” Sakura sighed, “But-“

“That’s great. I’ll see you around. I really should keep Itachi waiting.” Naruto smiled, “Goodnight Sakura.”

“Night.” Sakura frowned, waving at the male as he left. Naruto wasn’t entirely sure how to deal with this. It was a shock that something like this would happen straight after he was sure he managed to uncomplicated things. He was supposed to leave this village behind him and start afresh in Suna, but now he was certain that running away wasn’t going to make his life any easier. When Naruto joined Itachi in the car, he could tell that Itachi had seen what happened. The man was all knowing when it came to situations like this.

“I know that you saw what happened and I’d prefer it if we didn’t talk about it.” Naruto moaned, fastening his seatbelt.

“I wasn’t going to.” Itachi laughed, shifting the car to drive. The drive was mostly silent, when they finally reached Naruto’s house, the blond looked at the other male for a few good minutes before deciding to speak up.

“Why’s my life so complicated? I mean when I try to simplify things, they just become complex again.” Naruto groaned, “What am I doing wrong? Is everything going to fuck up in Suna as well?”

“Have you never heard that phrase? Life’s a bitch, so if it’s easy you’re doing it wrong.” Itachi snorted, “Things are complicated for everyone Naruto. No one gets it easy. People just know how to conceal better than others. We’re all going through our own personal battles.”

“This is why I like talking to you.” Naruto laughed, “You know how to make me feel better. I’ll see you some time next week?”

“Of course. You’re going to be leaving in two weeks.” Itachi stated, he didn’t like the idea of Naruto moving away by himself. He had always thought that the blond would travel with a companion, Naruto was a sociable creature.

“Night.” Naruto smiled, saluting the male. When Naruto finally entered his house, he wasn’t entirely sure what to do. He knew that he had to fix this thing with Sasuke before he left, but he wasn’t sure if he should do it right now. Considering the fact that Sasuke’s girlfriend had just kissed him. Well the blond decided that he could deal with Sasuke’s anger, the sooner he dealt with this, the better. Taking his phone out he sent a message to Sasuke, his only hope was that the male had the same number.

[](http://s153.photobucket.com/user/pluff39/media/download_zps532a738c.png.html)

Naruto glared at his phone, he was hoping that Sasuke would elaborate on where and when they would have this talk. From experience he knew it would best to not push the other male, Sasuke had the tendency to disregard things when people pushed them. Sighing in contempt. Naruto decided to do his regular nightly routine. The blond adult groaned at the sound of his doorbell ringing. It was far too late for friendly visits. He knew that the only person to have the balls to do something as stupid as this was Sasuke. When Naruto opened the door, he only opened far enough to see who was on the other side. And as usual, Naruto was right. Uchiha Sasuke stood in all of his jackass glory outside his house.  
“You changed your key.” Sasuke stated, shoving past Naruto to enter the house.

“Hello to you too.” Naruto sighed, closing the door. The dark haired male removed his coat and hung it next to Naruto’s own, the blond didn’t think that the other male would make himself comfortable. It was obvious that this was going to be a long conversation.

“You’re a lot cleaner than you used to be.” Sasuke declared, looking around the house. The house was pretty large for a single person, Sasuke personally thought it would have been better for Naruto to live in an apartment. The young adult was surprisingly a lot cleaner than he remembered, there were no stray clothes or dirty dishes to be seen.

“The joys of adulthood.” Naruto agreed, he was quite proud of himself for living a cleaner lifestyle. His house always felt homely. The blond continued to stare at Sasuke curiously as the dark haired male made himself comfortable on his couch, he was expecting for the adult to charge into his house and throw a couple of punches. It seemed that Sasuke did change in the seven years they didn’t talk.

“What did you want to talk about?” Sasuke asked, looking at the blond expectantly. Naruto sighed to himself lightly before taking a seat beside Sasuke on the couch.

“I wish I knew. I just know that we need to talk.” Naruto replied, “We need to label what we are, considering the fact that we’re not friends.”

“We’re definitely not friends.” Sasuke agreed, grinning slightly. The whole situation was scaring Naruto slightly, the young adult was wondering when Sasuke would snap and beat the living shit out of him.

“What do you want to be?” Naruto questioned, “Do you want to be acquaintances? Or do you want to go back to be strangers?”

What happened next definitely shocked Naruto. One minute they were having a serious discussion the next Sasuke’s lips were against his own. They spent a good few minutes languidly kissing before Naruto snapped back into his senses. Why was everyone kissing him today?  
“Before you start freaking out. I need you to know that Sakura is my friend. Not my girlfriend.” Sasuke noted, as Naruto stared at him with wide eyes.

“Why did you tell your family that she was your girlfriend then?” Naruto frowned, “Dude. I thought you hated me.”

“Like every other adult who asks their friend to pose as a romantic partner, I wanted my parents to get off my back.” Sasuke sighed, “Have I ever said that I hated you?”

“Well your brother saw your fake girlfriend kiss me. He’s going to tell your parents and you're going to have more problems. You know, I wasn’t expecting you of all people to do something this stupid.” Naruto snorted, “And you didn’t have to say you hated me. I have eyes you know. Every dirty look I get from you I see.”

“It was Sakura’s idea.” Sasuke scowled, “I only look at you like that when you do stupid stuff. Do you think I was happy with the idea of seeing you for the first time in seven years looking like a malnourished kid? You need to take care of yourself better.”

“But you said that we weren’t friends.” Naruto argued, this was pissing him off considerably. Looking at the other male proved that he wasn’t lying, but that meant something that frightened the blond a lot.

“I’m not your friend. I want to be your partner.” Sasuke stated, “I can’t be your friend.”

“Oh.” Naruto voiced, he wasn’t sure what to do with that information. The blond was always attracted to the other male, but he never thought there would be a day that his feelings would be reciprocated. There were two ways he could handle the situation. Agree to dating the male or rejecting him. Naruto wasn’t really agreeing with the latter and he thought it would actually be interesting for the two of them to explore this side of a relationship.

“I didn’t break your brain did I? I always knew you were a dobe, but I didn’t it was this bad.” Sasuke teased, snapping the blond out of his reverie.

“I was actually considering dating you, but I think I’ve changed my mind now. You’re an ass.” Naruto groaned, “Oh shit. What do I do about Sakura? She kissed me too.”

“She told me. Sakura complimented your kissing talents.” Sasuke snorted, “Don’t worry too much about her. She wants to apologise to you in person.”

“That makes me feel a bit better.” Naruto laughed, “So where do we go from here?”

“We’ll take it as it goes.” Sasuke smiled, pressing a kiss against Naruto’s lips.

“Shit. Could you have picked a worse time to admit that you like me?” Naruto moaned, “I’m going to be working in Suna for a while.”

“Perfect. I can help my family with their firm over there.” Sasuke grinned, holding the other male’s hands.

“You’re coming with me to Suna?” Naruto frowned, “Aren’t we moving a little too fast?”

“We’re making up for seven years.” Sasuke explained, “It’s taken us seven years to fix this.”

“You better not make me regret this.” Naruto snorted, it was strange to admit that he was now officially in a relationship.

“You won’t.” Sasuke promised, pressing another kiss against Naruto’s lips.

** FIN **


End file.
